Electric rat-trap.



J. .REGEGZI.

ELECTRIC RAT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 1912.

Patented Oct. 14, 1913.

6 SHEETSSHEET 1.

ATTORNEYS J. REGEGZI.

ELECTRIC RAT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 1912.

' 1,075,669. Patented Oct. 14, 1913.

' 6 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOR j z ggegai WITNESSES ATTORNEYS COLUMBIA PLAN c.

J. REGBOZI.

ELECTRIC RAT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 1912.

Patented Oct. 14, 1913.

6 SHEETSSHEET 3.

QEW a J W gega ATTORNEYS J. REGBOZI.

ELECTRIC RAT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 1912.

1,075,669,. Patented 0ct.14,1913.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 4,

WITNESSES INVENTOR ATTORNEYS J. REGEGZI.

ELECTRIC RAT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.22, 1912.-

1,075,669. Patented 001;. 14, 1913.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

ATTORNEYS J. REGEGZI.

ELECTRIC RAT TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 19 12.

Patented Oct. 14:, 1913.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 6.

INVENTOR WITNESSES ATTORNEYS AENT @FFT CE.

JOSEF REGEGZI, OF GARY, INDIANA.

ELECTRIC RAT-TRAP.

:no'meee.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Patented Get. 1%, 15913.

Application filed March 22, 1912. Serial No. 685,599.

To aZZ whomit may concern Be it known that I, Josnr Rnonozr, a subjectof the King of Hungary, residing at Gary, in the county of Lake andState of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inElectric Rat-Traps, of which the following is a specification, referencebeing had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to an electric rat trap, and the invention aimsto provide a trap into which a rat or other rodent is enticed and whichhas provision for exterminating the life of a rat or rodent by utilizinga current of electricity of sufficient voltage. The rat or rodent havingbeen shocked or electrocuted is deposited into a body of water and iflife is not extinct the water accomplishes the desired result.

The invention further aims to provide a trap having a series of trapdoors and tiltable platforms that are arranged whereby the operation ofone set of trap doors and tiltable platforms will reset another set oftrap doors and platforms and in consequence of this arrangement the trapis always in condition for entrapping rats or rodents.

The invention still further aims to accomplish the above results by acombination of mechanical elements that are assembled to provide adurable structure that can be safely used, and the function andoperation of these elements will be hereinafter specifically describedand then claimed.

Reference will now be had to the draw ings wherein like numerals ofreference denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, inwhich Figure 1 is a side elevation of a trap in accordance with thisinvention, Fig. 2 is a plan of the same, Fig. 3 is a longitudinalsectional view taken on the line TIIIIT of Fig. 2, Fig. a is ahorizontal sectional view taken on the line VV of Fig. 3, Fig. 5 is adetail illustrating the bag suspended in the tank, Fig. 6 is an enlargedperspective view of a detached tiltable platform, Fig. 7 is aperspective view of a portion of the platform showing the bearings for acont-act plate, Fig. 8 is an enlarged per spective View of a detachedkeeper, Fig. 9 is an enlarged perspective view of a trap door yoke, Fig.10 is an enlarged perspec tive view of a cam member, Fig. 11 is aperspective View of a portion of a latch, Fig. 12 is an enlargedperspective view of a stirrup, and Fig. 18 is an enlarged per- ?pectiveView of one end of a fulcrumed ever.

The reference numeral 1 denotes a tank or receptacle, preferablyrectangular in plan and containing a liquid 2, as water. Arranged uponthe upper edges of the tank 1, intermediate the vertical edges of thewalls of said tank, are clips 8 supporting the upper ends of the gangplanks 4: that facilitate a rat or rodent reaching the upper edges ofthe tank.

Supported by the upper edges of the tank 1 is a trap structure that isMaltese cross shaped in plan, said structure having radiating ordiverging branches. The structure comprises a bottom plate 5, and a topplate 6 connected to said bottom plate by vertical angle posts 7 locatedcentrally of the plates 5 and 6, and by posts 8 located at the ends ofthe plates 5 and 6. The posts 7 are connected to the posts 8 by sidewalls 9 having oblong openings 10 and the inner sides of these walls arelined with sheets of tin 11 having openings 12 at one side of the innerends thereof to facilitate placing a suitable bait within the trap. Theposts 7 are connected by vertical walls 13 having openings 14 and saidwalls are lined with metallic plates 15 arranged upon the outer sides ofsaid walls. The top and bottom plates together with the walls 13providing a central rectangular compartment 16 and the bottom plate 5has an opening 17 establishing communication between the compartment 16and the tank 1.

The trap structure has the bottom, at the ends thereof, provided withangle brackets 18 supporting said structure upon the upper edges of thetank 1 and said bottom plate is provided with oblong openings 19 toaccommodate tiltable platforms 20. The platforms are provided withapertured ears 21 that are pivotally connected by a transverse pin 22 toapertured lugs 23 carried by the bottom plate 5. The tiltable platformsare pivotally connected to the outer ends of the bottom plate 5 andswing downwardly into the tank or receptacle 1. Each tiltable platformhas a metallic contact plate 24 and said platform and said plate,adjacent to the free end thereof has an opening 25. Movably supported inthe opening 25 by a transverse pin 26 connecting depending lugs 27carried by the platform 20, is a keeper 28. The keeper 28 has the lowerend thereof provided with an extension 29 connected by a coiled compression spring 30 to the bottom of the platform 20. The upper end of hekeeper 28 has extensions 31 and 32. The extension 31 engages the innerend of a contact plate 33, said plate having a stepped portion 34 and alongitudinal slot 35, said slot providing clearance for the keeper 28.The ends of the contact plate are provided with strips of insulation Thecontact plate 33 is provided with depending apertured cars 37, separatedfrom the plate 33 by sheet insulation, that are pivotally mounted insets of apertured ears by pivot pins 39, said apertured ears beingcarried by the tiltable platform at the sides of the opening 25.

The top plate 6 centrally of the trap is provided with a bearing post 40having slots 41 and 42. Pivotally mounted in these slots by pins 43 arerock levers 44 and 45 arranged at right angles to each other andextending over the diverging and radiating branches of the trap. Thearrangement of the slots 41 and 42 permits of the rock lever 4-4 beingpositioned above the rock ever 45, and as these rock lovers areidentical in construction. and operation I deem it only necessary todescribe one of said levers in connection with two branches of the trap.

Each rock lever has the outer end thereof slotted, as at 46 to receive aroller 47 revolubly mounted in a vertical yoke 43 carried by the upperedge of the door 49. The doors 49 when lowered by the rock levers 45 and45 close the outer ends of the radiating branch compartments. The lever,adjacent to the pivot thereof, has side enlargements 50 to which aresecured, as at 51 parallel slotted cam members 52, said membersaccommodating revoluble rollers 53 carried by the outer ends of stirrups54 that are slotted, as at 55 to provide clear ance for the rock lever.The stirrups 54 are fixed by rectangular pins 56 to the angular ends 57of latches 53. The latches 58 are pivotally mounted by pins 59 betweenapertured ears 60, carried by the top plate 6 and having the inner endsthereof pointed or tapered, as at 62. The pointed or tapered ends of thelatches extending into the slots 35 of the contact plates 33 and areheld in engagement with the contact plates 33 by the extensions 32 ofthe keepers 28. WVith the latches in this position the contact plates 33are tilted, as best shown in Fig. 3.

The rock levers 44 and 45, adjacent to the ends thereof, are providedwith cross heads 63 having the ends thereof provided with guides 64 forflexible rods 65. The rods 65 are attached to the rock levers 44 and 45,as at 66 and to the tiltable platform, as at 67 Each rod has arectangular formation r with the ends of each rod connected together, asat 68 and with the rods movably connected to the tiltable platforms,said platforms can be raised by a rocking movement of the lever 45.

Extendingover the upper edges of the tank or through a suitable openingprovided therefor in the wall of said tank are leading in cables 69 and70 that are suitably insulated and that are connected to a suitablesource of electrical energy, as a gen orator capable of producing acurrent of suiiicient voltage to electrocute a rodent. Within the cables69 are wires 71 that extend upwardly througn the opening 17 of thebottom plate 5 and are connected to binding posts 72, electrodes 73carried by the metallic lining 15 of the compartment 16. Theseelectrodes have surfaces 74 adapted to be wiped by the extensions 31 ofthe keepers 28. The cable 70 contains wires 75 that extend upwardlythrough the opening 17, compartment 16 and openings 7 6 in the top plate6, said wires being connected to angle plates 77 carried by anglesupports 7 8 mounted upon the top plate 6. The angle plates 7 7 areconnected by wires 79 to the rods 65, as best shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4.

From the bottom plate are suspended hooks 80 supporting the upper edgesof a bag 81 that is suspended within the water or liquid contents withinthe tank. The upper edges of the bag 81 are maintained in a circularform by a ring 82 that is engaged by the hooks 80 inserted in the upperedges of the bag. The bag 81 is adapted to receive electrocuted rodentsand said bag can be easily removed whereby the water will drain from thebag and permits of the bodies of the rodents being obtained and disposedof without renewing the contents of the tank 1.

Operation: A suitable bait can be placed I upon the tiltable contactplates 33 to attract a rodent into one of the open branchcompartments ofthe trap, it being impossible for the rodent to enter one of theopenings of the side walls of the trap on account of the interveningbody of water. A rodent attempting to obtain the bait places the forefeet upon the elevated edge of the tiltable contact plate and rocks saidplate sufficiently to release the latch 58 and move the edge of thetiltable contact plate into engagement with the, electrodes 73. Anelectric circuit is then completed which is as follows: the branch wire71 of the cable 69 to the electrodes 73, tiltable contact plate throughthe rodents body to the metallic plate 24 of the tiltable platform 20,rods 65 to rock lever 45, rods 65 by wire 79 to the binding posts of theangle supports 78 and by wire 7 5 to the cable 70. The weight of rocklever will be tilted by the connection ($5. When the platform 20 islowered the rat is deposited within the liquid in the bag 81.

From the foregoing it will be observed that the trap always has twobranch compartments open and ready for use, and that the othercompartments are open or set for use upon the first mentionedcompartments being closed or used. Further, each branch compartment ofthe trap has contact plates normally in an open circuit and the circuitis only completed by a rodents body, which cannot escape from thecompartment on account of the door closing, even though not thoroughlyelectrocuted. WVith the operating mechanism of the trap properlybalanced, the mechanism can be actuated by a mere pressure of the forefeet of a rodent, the mechanism being Very sensitive in order that evena mouse can operate the trap.

I reserve the right to use suitable insulation to prevent a shortcircuit and to resortto any suitable source of electrical energy that iscapable of electrocuting a rodent.

What I claim is 1. In a rat trap, the combination with a suitable sourceof electrical energy, a tank containing water, and gang planks leadingto the upper edges of said tank, of a trap structure supported by theupper edges of said tank and having branch compartments, rock leverspivotally mounted upon the top of said structure, doors carried by theends of said rock levers and adapted to alternately close two branchcompartments of said trap structure, a releasable tiltable platformarranged in each branch compartment of said trap structure and adaptedto be lowered by the weight of a rodent to deposit the rodent into saidtank, means for releasing said tilting platforms and contact plates ineach compartment of said trap and normally in an open circuit with saidsource of electrical energy.

2. In a rat trap, the combination with a receptacle containing water, ofa trap structure supported by the upper edges of said receptacle andhaving radiating branch compartments formed therein, rock leverspivo-tally mounted upon the top of said trap structure, doors carried bythe ends of said rock levers and adapted to alternately close oppositebranch compartments of said trap, releasable tiltable platforms arrangedin the compartments of said trap, releasing means for said tiltableplatforms, and connections between said tiltable platforms and said rocklevers whereby said tiltable platforms when released will be lowered bythe weight of a rodent simultaneously with the closing of said door andwill precipitate the rodent into said tank.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

JOSEF REGEGZI. lVitnesses ARTHUR BUCI-IKO, J or. KAROLYI.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C."

